It’s see you later, not goodbye

Saying goodbye is never easy. It’s especially difficult here in Mozambique. Volunteers here become like family. We don’t have anyone else we can turn to, we probably don’t have either anyone or more than one person to speak English to at site, and sometimes it’s hard to have deep emotion-packed conversations with Mozambicans as our cultures are vastly different in some aspects. For this, volunteers becomes clutch in our lives and sanity.

We might not get along all the time. We might have arguments and fights. At the end of the day, these people are our lifeline. They are our family. In America, if someone rubs you the wrong way, you can easily push them aside and spend time with other people. Here, that’s impossible. You learn to overlook different things and focus on the person. We all have struggles and every single site is so different, even the 150km road between Alto Molòcué through Nauela to Invinha and ultimately to Gurué. We all have different resources, different routines, different types of people, and most importantly, different sites. Sometimes it’s difficult to remember we don’t all live in the same world here, but I try – I really try.

Well, this weekend was Lee’s last weekend in Gurué. She has finished her two years in Peace Corps, and headed down to Maputo for COS (close of service). She’ll have doctor’s appointments, appointments with different Peace Corps staff members, another language proficiency exam, and much more. There are three weeks of COS for MOZ 18, this particular group of health volunteers, and Lee has the first week. I went out to Gurué to see her one last time and wish her well in her post-volunteer adventures.

I left Nauela Friday morning and arrived late morning in Gurué. I dropped my stuff off and bumped into Sara arriving at the same time from Namarroi. From there Sara and I grabbed an egg sandy, some samosas, and a cold Coke for breakfast before going and purchasing some of the food we needed for that afternoon’s going away party. Lee met up with us and we got all the shopping done pretty quickly. From there, we started cooking. Betty, Lee’s empregada and an amazing woman, came over with one of her daughters to help cook. We had delicious food after cooking for almost 4 hours! We had rice, salad with homemade salad dressing, fried fish (that was once frozen and not dried – so good!), frango zambeziano (you use coconut milk to baste and marinade and was delicious), couve, and yummy banana bread. The spread was amazingly delicious and perfect for Betty, three of her five children, two of grandchildren, Hannah, Amanda, Sara, Lee, and myself. I really enjoyed it. Later that afternoon we hung around the house and ultimately decided to go to a bar and then a discoteca (club for dancing) that evening. Since we ate lunch so late (around 3pm), we didn’t feel the need for eating dinner that night. We danced the night away until around 2:30 or 3am. From there we went back to Lee’s house to go to bed. We were all exhausted.

The lovely spread of food we had at Lee’s going away party at her house. It was delicious.

Lee and Betty, Lee’s empreagada, saying goodbye. Lee gave her a cellphone when she left as Betty did not have one the entire two years she worked for Lee.

We woke up super early the following Saturday morning so Lee and Sara could go to a REDES thing and Hannah could head home to Invinha. I hung around the city for a bit buying a few things I needed. Later that morning I went over to an expat’s house where three other volunteers were staying for the weekend (they were down from Niassa province). I hung out with them and later we all went into the city to buy some things for the party they were hosting that night. That afternoon the expats drove us all to the tea fields and to a nice spot where there is a small waterfall. We hung for a little while, I took a short nap on a rock, and then we headed back. The view is just gorgeous. Sometimes I can’t believe I live so close to such a beautiful area. The expats were having a small party for three birthdays and Lee’s going away party. We ate more delicious food – we had three cakes – and enjoyed ourselves. We hung out until midnight when one of the volunteers was turning 24. From there we headed back to Lee’s to go to sleep since Lee had to wake up super early to head out.

This small waterfall/brook was just beautiful. I ended up taking a nap on one of the big rocks!

A few of us at the small waterfall.

The tea goes on for miles and miles. It’s just so beautiful. I feel so at peace in the tea fields.

I just love tea. I love to look at it, walk near it, and drink it! Chá de Gurué (tea of Gurue)!

I just love the mountains in the tea fields in Gurue. They’re just so pretty and calming.

Sunday, Lee got up around 4am and was out the door by 4:15. We quickly said goodbye/see ya later and then Sara and I went back to sleep until about 6am. We woke up, packed our things and then I left the house. Sara locked up and headed out a little later. I managed to find a chapa home pretty quick. Had I not found one, I would have hung out with the volunteers/expats and done a hike up to the big waterfalls – the hike we did at Christmas. I was glad to be going back as I got no sleep all weekend and was looking forward to seeing my kitty! I relaxed all afternoon, but I did manage to bring my friend Louisa some carrots and green peppers I picked up from the city. She was so thankful and excited I had thought of her and brought her things back she wasn’t able to purchase here in Nauela.

I had brought back a few coconuts from Gurué, as it is impossible to purchase them here. On Monday I asked Fausia to make some couve and xima for us for lunch. It was a lot of work for her as I had managed to come up with both coconut and peanuts, so she was busy for most the morning. I think she really enjoyed it though, as she usually doesn’t have coconut or peanuts to make it. Couve is a dish that uses kale, tomatoes, onions, a bit of oil, coconut milk, and milk from peanuts and it’s cooked over the fire for a while. Of course we ate it with xima, but that night I ate it with rice, as I don’t know how to make xima that well. It was a lovely meal. I realized this weekend I should have Fausia cook more dishes for me. She knows how to cook very well, and she knows how to cook many Mozambican dishes I don’t know how to make. Plus whenever she cooks, she eats too! I wonder what else I can have her make!

Overall, saying goodbye to Lee won’t be the first time I have to see a volunteer leave Mozambique. Come November, the two girls I love in Invinha will be leaving, the two girls in Mocuba will be leaving, and one guy in Alto Molòcué will be leaving. It’ll be a much bigger group of people I enjoy spending time with leaving, but that also means we’ll be getting a bunch of new volunteers (MOZ 23) coming in to replace them. I can’t believe the MOZ 22ers will find out their site placements on Thursday! It was so exciting for me, and I am excited now too because we’ll soon know who’s replacing Lee!

It’s nice that although we’re saying goodbye, it’s not forever. These people are my family and I hope to continue to keep up with them post-Peace Corps. This is just a small snapshot of our lives, but one adventure I’m sure I’ll have lifelong friends from.